High Fuel Prices, Grab to Raise Taxi Fares from 30 March
Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia - Grab in Singapore will raise fares for its metered taxi service, GrabCab, starting from 30 March until 31 May 2026. This is intended to help alleviate the financial burden on driver partners amid the trend of rising fuel prices (BBM).
Citing Channel News Asia (CNA), GrabCab explained that the surge in fuel prices at petrol stations has altered the operational revenue calculations for driver partners.
The company emphasised that implementing this additional charge on the meter is a follow-up step after distributing fuel vouchers last week.
“Our drivers’ calculations have changed rapidly with the rise in fuel prices at petrol stations. Following the fuel vouchers we distributed last week, this meter top-up is the next necessary step to ensure that the extra costs faced by drivers can be partially offset by every trip they complete,” the company stated, as cited by CNA, quoted on Tuesday (24/3/2026).
The fare increase applies only to metered taxi journeys, whether hailed directly on the street or booked via the Grab app. The adjustment will be applied to the distance and waiting time components, where the base rate per unit will rise from 0.26 Singapore Dollars (S$) to S$0.27.
“This action is part of broader efforts to support our drivers in continuing to operate sustainably while fuel prices remain volatile,” Grab’s management explained.
Technically, the new unit rate will be charged for every 400 metres for journeys between 1 kilometre (km) and 10 km, then every 350 metres after exceeding 10 km, or every 45 seconds of waiting time.
Nevertheless, the company assured that the initial flag-down fare remains unchanged, at S$4.60 for four-passenger taxis and S$4.80 for six-passenger taxis.
“Although individual fares vary, GrabCab has calibrated this adjustment to provide immediate relief to drivers for every kilometre they travel,” the company added.
Under this new scheme, a short journey of around 4 km without waiting time is estimated to see an increase of S$0.08, a medium-distance trip of 12 km will incur an additional charge of about S$0.28, while a long-distance journey of 30 km is projected to experience a fare hike of up to S$0.80.
“We continue to monitor the situation closely and remain committed to exploring further ways to support our driver partners during this turbulent period,” the company concluded.